HOLY TRINITY THORNHILL
CEMETERY
CELEBRATING 185 YEARS
2
This booklet has been prepared in
Celebration of the 185th Anniversary of Holy Trinity Church, Thornhill
and its associated Cemetery.
The cemetery for Holy Trinity Church is located
behind the original site of the church on
Yonge Street at Royal
Orchard Boulevard, now
occupied by Thornhill
Baptist Church.
This is the last resting
place for many of the
original settlers and
Members of the church,
all of whom came to the
district from the British
Isles or from the United
States. Many of the early
clergy for Holy Trinity
Church are interred
here. A description of
some of the more
noteworthy gravestones
follows.
3
J ohn and Rebecca Willson are the earliest colonists buried in Holy Trinity Cemetery, having come to British North
America from New Jersey in 1783. They had supported the
British during the American Revolution (1775 -1783) and were
driven out of the United States in the aftermath of the war,
facing confiscation of their lands for remaining loyal to the
Crown. They moved to New Brunswick in the spring of 1783
as part of a mass emigration of loyalists. John’s nephew, John
Arnold (1769-1855), son of his sister Mary, came to New
Brunswick in the same fleet, possibly with other members of
the Arnold family.
When land settlements in Upper Canada were offered to
United Empire Loyalists after the colony’s establishment in 1791, the Willsons and Arnold(s)
decided to relocate. John and Rebecca settled just west of York (Toronto), where John held
the lease of the first “King’s Mill” on St. John’s Creek, now respectively known as the Old Mill
and Humber River. In 1799, the couple moved north to a farm property at the corner of
present-day Yonge Street and Steeles Avenue. Rebecca Willson died in 1804 and was
originally buried on the family farm.
In 1802 the Willson’s nephew, John Arnold, had married Elizabeth Miles, the daughter
of Abner Miles (c. 1752-1806). Abner Miles had come to Upper Canada from Genessee, New
York in 1794; Miles first settled in York, but eventually moved north to Markham in 1803.
Until 1806, John and Elizabeth lived in a home at the corner of Yonge and John Streets in
Thornhill, until they moved to Abner’s former property in Richmond Hill, which Elizabeth had
inherited at his death. Elizabeth Arnold played the organ at Trinity Church (as it was then
named) on Sundays for several years after its construction in 1830. In 1860, John and
Elizabeth’s son, Robert Arnold, built a large home on Yonge Street now known as the Arnold
House; the home is now a heritage site situated at the corner of Spring Gate Boulevard and
Springfield Way in Thornhill.
Despite his advanced age, like many local residents (see Langstaff and Moodie entries),
John Willson served as an officer in the War of 1812. With his son and nephew, John Arnold,
who also served in the 1st York Militia, he was taken prisoner following the siege of York in
April 1813 and held at Fort York.
John Willson died in 1829 at the age of 90, and was interred at East Gwillimbury. In
1940, the remains of the Willsons were relocated to Holy Trinity Cemetery.
John Willson (1739-1829) Rebecca Willson (nee Thixton) (1743-1804)
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D ue to their business developments in the area in the 1820s-1840s, William Parsons and Benjamin Thorne are considered to be the founders of Thornhill, although settlement began in the community from the mid-1790s. Born respectively in 1785 and 1796 in
Dorcester, England, William and Benjamin were brothers-in-law, William having married
Benjamin’s half-sister Susannah. The three parties immigrated to Upper Canada in 1820 with
the men seeking property acquisition and business ventures. Almost immediately, both
purchased land on the east side of Yonge Street across from the present Holy Trinity
Cemetery. Together they established a store in this area, operated by Parsons, which would
become a focal point of the village. Thorne subsequently leased and later purchased the grist
mill and tannery that was already in operation. The
brothers-in-law developed an import-export business;
Thorne managed flour production, while Parsons began a
company that handled the exporting of flour and
importing of groceries, dry goods, and metals to and from
England. This form of business partnership was typical
among importer-exporters in Upper Canada during the
1820s-1840s.
Thorne subsequently purchased other mills in the area, as well as a store in York. He
employed family members in his businesses, amassing significant wealth by the early 1840s.
Wheat was Upper Canada’s primary staple product in this period. Exporters benefitted from
the British Corn Laws, which offered trade preferences to colonial products. Like most wheat-
related businesses, Thorne’s enterprises suffered greatly after the Corn Laws were repealed
by the British government of Sir Robert Peel in 1846. With excesses of flour he was unable to
sell, he borrowed substantially from the Bank of Upper Canada in an effort to rejuvenate his
businesses. When the British markets collapsed in 1848, these loans were recalled. Unable to
pay his debts, Thorne’s assets were liquidated, and, like so many of his contemporaries, he
faced financial ruin. Apparently unable to cope with this failure after a lifetime of success,
Benjamin Thorne shot himself outside his home on July 1, 1848. He died the following day.
Benjamin Thorne and William Parsons were actively involved in the local Thornhill
community. Both helped establish Trinity Church in 1830. Together, they established the
village’s first post office with Parson serving as postmaster. During his career, Thorne was
very involved with colonial banking and held several banking positions.
William & Susannah Parsons (nee Thorne) 1785-1862; d. 1884 Benjamin & Anna Maria Thorne (nee Wilcocks) 1796-1848; d. 1881
5
E lizabeth Maxwell and her sons Thomas and John are among the known cholera victims laid to rest in Holy Trinity Cemetery. In the first half of the nineteenth century, epidemics of cholera occurred worldwide, with serious outbreaks occurring in 1832, 1834, 1849, 1852,
1854, 1866. Knowledge of disease transmission and prevention was virtually nonexistent,
resulting in widespread public fear of cholera. Most people in this era believed diseases were
spread by “miasma” – environmental vapours emitted from water sources and vegetation.
Although some physicians theorized cholera was caused by contaminated water and poor
sanitation, the theory was generally not accepted by the wider medical community.
Knowledge and understanding of the bacterium Vibrio cholera was not widely available until
the late 1880s.
Once cholera entered a household, it was not uncommon for entire families to die of
the disease in a short period of time. The Maxwells died in the same week (July 27, 31, and
August 2), suggesting they fell ill in quick succession. Although fever sheds were established
to treat patients in York during the 1832 cholera epidemic, many colonial families would have
had no access to these, and no one to care for them once they became ill. The Rev. Isaac
Fiddler, who was the first ‘interim’ rector at Trinity Church for a few months in 1831, wrote
that he conducted six services in two days as cholera victims were to be buried quickly upon
death. In fact, “two of these victims died of great suddenness. Both were seated at the
supper table with their family, and were cheerful and in good health, yet both were interred
before dawn.”
T he Rev. George Mortimer was Holy Trinity’s first permanent incumbent. Born in London, England in 1784 to a lower middle-class family, George and his
brother Thomas were educated at Cambridge, both
opting to enter ministry. This decision likely reflected
both an attempt to advance their social position through
a profession, and exposure to evangelical values in their
youth. Though Thomas became a prominent clergyman
and author in London, while in England, George never advanced beyond a curacy. An illness
at age three had left him disabled, and ill health throughout his life seems to have hindered
career advancement.
Elizabeth (mother)
Thomas and John Maxwell (sons/brothers) (d. 1832)
The Rev. George Mortimer (1784-1844)
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Concerned about his children’s future given his poor financial situation and the limited
occupational prospects in England, in 1831 Mortimer decided to emigrate at the age of 47.
With advice received from clergy contacts in England, the United States, and the British North
American colonies, he opted to go to Upper Canada, despite having no firm promise of a
clergy post. Sailing in June 1832, Mortimer left his wife and daughters in Britain until he found
secure employment, initially bringing only his sons to assist him. By the fall of 1832,
Lieutenant Governor John Colborne had arranged for Mortimer to be Incumbent at Trinity
Church, Thornhill, which was established two years earlier and previously served by itinerant
preachers.
With a realistic view of lay provisions and mission stipends, Colborne told Mortimer his
remuneration might include £40-50 annually from the Trinity parishioners, housing, and
possibly £100 from stipends provided by the British Society for the Propagation of the Gospel
in Foreign Parts. Mortimer’s initial accommodation was poor, but with a parsonage promised
to be built by the time his wife and daughters arrived in the summer, he was content. His
hopes for his sons were already being realized, as he was able to purchase land for them;
Archdeacon Rev. John Strachan had also volunteered to mentor his son Arthur who was living
in York.
Mortimer became frustrated, however, when his clergy income and housing proved
inadequate for his family of 5-8 persons. To supplement his clerical earnings, he purchased a
few acres of land in Thornhill to farm. Like many such investments undertaken in the context
of Upper Canada’s unstable economy, Mortimer lost money on the endeavour. By the time
his family arrived in 1833, no proper house had been built for him, and he described the
family’s situation as “sadly cramped together in a wooden frame house, consisting of only
four poorly constructed rooms, [that are] peculiarly hot and oppressive in summer and
unusually cold in winter.” Four years later, a home was completed, but only after Mortimer
threatened to leave the parish.
During his incumbency, George Mortimer initiated several community projects in
Thornhill. Particularly note-worthy was his work with physician Dr. Lucius O’Brien to begin a
temperance society to curb problems associated with excessive drinking in the village. Social
consumption of alcohol formed a fundamental part of masculine professional culture in the
1830s and 1840s; O’Brien himself had realized his own social and professional life was
causing him to have a problem with drink. In 1843, Mortimer founded Thornhill’s first library,
the “Library of Useful Knowledge”, to improve and promote literacy and culture in the village.
Having suffered ill health for several years, Mortimer died tragically in 1844 after being
thrown from his carriage en route to Toronto. Yet, by this time his hopes for his children had
been realized: His two sons were well settled, one having entered ministry, and the other
serving as president of the Toronto Stock Exchange.
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A native of Scotland, Col. Robert Moodie was an officer of the British army. In active duty from 1795-1820, he served first in the Napoleonic Wars and later in Canada, during the War of 1812 where he participated in the Battles of Fort Erie (1812), Sackett’s Harbor (1813),
and Lundy’s Lane (1814). Moodie entered inactive service on half-pay in 1820, and retired
from the military in 1834. The following year, he settled at Richmond Hill, in a home on Yonge
St. near Elgin Mills Road.
By late 1837, Upper Canada was experiencing considerable political strife. A group of
radical reformers was deeply angered by the leadership of the Tories who governed the
colony. Toronto Tories were particularly influential and controlling; several members of this
elite group had long-standing United Empire Loyalist roots in the colony, and formed
alliances when their control of policies and culture were threatened. The non-responsible
structure of government, whereby the Executive Council (cabinet) was appointed, rather than
chosen from the elected majority in the Legislative Assembly, allowed this so-called “Family
Compact” to dominate Upper Canada’s political and economic systems through patronage,
managing affairs to suit their own interests. Resisting this system, radical leaders such as
William Lyon Mackenzie and Dr. John Rolph desired American-style democracy and greater
economic equality in the colony, and were supported by farmers and merchants from regions
just outside the city. The reform vision was wholly at odds with the British elite values of the
Compact Tories, and tensions between the two groups had increased during the 1830s. They
reached a climax with the outbreak of the Upper Canadian Rebellion on December 4, 1837.
Colonel Robert Moodie (d. December 4, 1837)
8
That afternoon, a military associate of Col. Robert Moodie’s was drinking in a Yonge
Street tavern near Moodie’s home. He spotted a group of approximately 75 armed men
heading south towards Toronto, and soon left for Moodie’s home, telling tavern-owner
William Crew to alert local “loyalists” to meet at Moodie’s, which was considered a
“headquarters” loyal to British values and colonial administration. After some discussion at
the home, Crew set out on horseback for Toronto to warn Lieutenant-Governor Sir Francis
Bond Head of the advancing rebels. By 6:00 p.m. Moodie’s group got word that Crew had
been taken prisoner. With three other men, Robert Moodie set off for the city. His group was
stopped by the rebels outside Montgomery’s Tavern (Yonge Street, north of Eglinton
Avenue), and a skirmish ensued during which Robert Moodie was shot twice in the side.
Taken prisoner, he died inside the tavern a short while later. He is known as the first casualty
of the 1837 Rebellion. During his funeral in Holy Trinity Cemetery, many attendees carried
weapons for fear the rebels would return and disrupt the service.
D r. Lewis Garibaldi Langstaff (known as “Garibaldi”) was born in 1859 in Langstaff, Ontario, an area now part of Richmond Hill at the corner of Highway 7 and Yonge Street. It was originally known as Langstaff Corners, after his paternal grandparents whose
home was located there in the early nineteenth century. His grandfather, John Langstaff
(1774-1865), immigrated to Richmond Hill from New Jersey in 1808. His grandmother, Lucy
Miles (1781-1844), was another daughter of Abner Miles (see Willson entry). John worked as
a teacher in the area before serving in the York militia during the
War of 1812. After the war, he combined farm work with operation
of a store and smithy. He and Lucy had 8 children, including
Garibaldi’s father, John Langstaff (1819-1867), and his uncle,
physician Dr. James Langstaff (1825-1889).
Dr. James Langstaff studied medicine in the 1840s at Dr. John
Rolph’s proprietary medical school in Toronto and Guy’s Hospital
London (England). He was licensed by the Medical Board of Upper
Canada in 1849. Initially James practiced in Unionville, but soon
relocated his medical practice to Richmond Hill where he came to
have a large practice. He served as a medical instructor at Rolph’s
school beginning in the early 1850s after its incorporation as the
Toronto School of Medicine (1851). He continued practicing until his
death in 1889. Through his professional work, James Langstaff
established a family legacy; several members of subsequent
generations also became physicians, including his son, Dr. Rolph
Langstaff and his nephews Drs. Elliot and Lewis Garibaldi Langstaff.
Dr. Lewis Garibaldi Langstaff (1859-1917) Josephine Langstaff (nee Chadwick) (1885-1921)
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Dr. Lewis Garibaldi Langstaff also worked as a physician in the Thornhill and Richmond
Hill areas. Little is known of his early life or his medical work. The 1881 census lists Garibaldi
as a medical student, and it is known that he worked as an assistant in James Langstaff’s
practice in the 1880s, when his uncle was elderly and infirm. Garibaldi took over the practice
for two years after James’ death in 1889; although James’ son Rolph inherited the business,
Rolph had yet to complete his medical training. In 1891 Garibaldi is listed in the census as
living in the James Langstaff home with Rolph and another cousin. It is unclear where he lived
and practiced between 1892 and 1914, though it may have been either Thornhill or New
York. In 1915, at age 56, he married Josephine Chadwick in Brooklyn, NY; she was 26 years his
junior. The couple settled in a house where the clubhouse of the Thornhill Golf & Country
Club now stands. That year, Garibaldi became a warden of Holy Trinity, a position which he
held until his premature death in March 1917. At the time of his death, Josephine was
pregnant with their son, and their daughter was only a year old. Sadly, Josephine died only
four years later after a short illness.
In addition to the local school, park, and community centre honouring Dr. James
Langstaff’s work, Garibaldi and Josephine’s graves serve as reminders of the extensive
legacy of the Langstaff family in this area. Other members of the Langstaff family buried in
Holy Trinity Cemetery include Charity (Stille) Langstaff (1819-1848), wife of Miles Langstaff
(another uncle of Garibaldi) and Garibaldi’s brother and sister-in-law Edwin Curry Langstaff
(1861-1938) and Rose Mary Sharpe (1860-1948).
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O n a small rectangular plot of land toward the rear of the cemetery stand five concrete crosses marking the graves of eight men who were inmates of the Langstaff Industrial Prison Farm in the 1920s and 1930s. The farm, which opened in 1913 as an adjunct facility to
ease overcrowding at Toronto’s Don Jail, operated as a minimum-security men’s prison for
inebriates and petty criminals until it closed in 1958. The crosses now present are recently-
installed replicas of the original markers.
Prior to September 2014 when the original crosses were removed, the markers were
in a poor state of repair: Unlike many of the more structurally sound historic and modern
monuments surrounding them, they were aged, weathered, and had deteriorated with
improper past repairs. Under terms of the Funeral, Burial and Cremation Services Act, 2002,
Ontario cemeteries are required to ensure plot markers do not risk public safety. It was
necessary for Holy Trinity Cemetery to take down the Langstaff crosses before they fell,
potentially injuring someone. The need to establish legal ownership of the plots for this
purpose led to discoveries about the burials and social circumstances surrounding their
history.
Initially the men were thought to be ‘prisoners’ from the jail farm; however, research
revealed them to be graves of homeless, unemployed men who had been charged with
“vagrancy” as a means of giving them shelter in jail. Many were elderly and had committed
no crime other than being infirm, having no family
support, and living on the street. Unemployment had
soared after WWI and, in the interwar period, sources of
welfare support and public housing in Toronto were very
limited and insufficient for the numbers of men without
work. Old age pension plans were introduced in Canada in
1927 by the government of William Lyon Mackenzie King,
but were not implemented in Ontario until 1929 under
limited terms.
When considering marker preservation and/or replacement, the Cemetery Committee
was reluctant to leave the original markers laid flat as some had double-sided inscriptions and
one side would have been hidden. Preservation of the crosses was important as all traces of
the Langstaff Farm have disappeared under more recent development. After much research
and consultation, a decision was made to create replicas of the original crosses with the same
inscriptions. The only changes made on the new crosses are corrections of some death dates
since archival records revealed errors on the original crosses.
Langstaff Industrial Farm Burials
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NOTES
Holy Trinity Church
140 Brooke St. Tel: 905 889 5931 [email protected]
Thornhill ON L4J 1Y9 Fax: 905 889 5632 www.holytrinity-thornhill.ca
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